If You Can't Stand The Heat
by darkrogue
Summary: Hermione always one to take advice to heart. So when someone tells her "If You can't stand the heat, get out of the kitchen", of course she listens. But as life goes on, she wonders...what happens if you CAN"T get out....


Hey guys! Just so you know, I own none of this (Like JK will want Ron after this) Umthis story contains mentionings of rape and slight abuse, so if you are easily offended, please know, and don't read. Also, Ron and Hermione fansDON'T HATE ME!!!! 

So here goes the story:

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At seventeen we fell in love,

High school sweethearts,

Love was so brand-new.

We took the vows of man and wife,

Forever,

For life

__

"And do you, Hermione Anne Granger, take this Ronald Arthur Weasley, to be you lawful wedded husband, to have and to hold, to love and to cherish, in sickness and in health, for richer and for poorer, from this day on?

"I do"

It had been two years since that day, thought Hermione with a sigh, staring out the window to the rainy London world beyond. Two whole years tomorrow. 

She looked up anxiously at the clock Mr. And Mrs. Weasley (_mom and dad now,_ Hermione reminded herself absently), had given them for their wedding. Ron Weasley it read- WORK. _I hope he gets this job,_ Hermione thought, praying to an unseen being. _God, I hope he gets this job. _

Their marriage had started out perfectly. Long days in the sun, relaxing together, the prospect of being newly married and in love made everything seem so much brighter. Ron had a stable job at the Ministry, Hermione was at Pigpimples, the Wizarding College, getting a degree in businessthey were happy. 

Then the Ministry had made several job cuts, and they had lived for months worrying every night about whether or not Ron would get to stay. He hadn't been able to. They had cut him, and with him losing his job, their whole balance gave way. Hermione could no longer attend school, and spent all day at home, cleaning up around their tiny, tiny house, and Ron spent week after week of going to job interviewsnobody seemed to want to take someone so young, and with so little experience. And then, five months after their first year's anniversary had rolled around; Hermione found out she was pregnant. 

She was in the end of her seventh term now_Only two more to go,_ she thought happily. Everyone said that she was meant to be a mothereveryone except for Harry that is. Hermione frowned, getting up off of their sagging sofa and idly heading into the kitchen, thinking she'd start making dinner. 

Something was definitely up with Harry. She wasn't quite sure what it was, but ever since she and Ron had gotten married, he had seemed very negative about their relationship, always stiffly answering the phone when they callednot keeping in touch well. And then he had made it big in the Quidditch business through a connection she'd arranged for himand not said a word of thanks. He had simply hopped on the muggle plane to America, and hadn't said a word since. It had been nearly eight months. 

Hermione reached up into the pantry, searching for something, anything she could whip up into dinner. She found a few rolls, a couple of carrots from their sad little garden, some SPAM and three eggs. Just as she had finished chopping the carrots, she heard Ron's footsteps coming up the front walk. Hurriedly wiping her hands on her maternity jeans, Hermione rushed to the front door, her hopes dropping when she saw his face. 

"Again?" she asked. Ron shrugged. 

"I won't officially know in two weeksbut I doubt it. This other guy had had thirty three years of experiencewho is going to take a nineteen year old with three months experience when there's better meat to be found?" he replied with a sigh, flopping into one of their miss-match armchairs. "Tea made?" He asked, closing his eyes and throwing his head back against the wall.

"Not yet," Hermione replied, sitting down carefully on the arm of his chair.

Ron's eyes snapped open. "Well can you get it made?" he asked waspishly, giving Hermione a shove that almost made her fall. 

"Ron!" she squeaked, struggling to stay upright. "You could hurt the baby!"

"Damn the kid, all I want is some fucking tea!" Ron snapped. "Get to it!" Hermione felt tears well up -Ron had never spoken to her like that- but she hurried to do as he said. As much as she wanted to fight back, this baby was more important.

With shaking hands she prepared his tea, picking up the tray and carrying it carefully back into the room. Ron was still sitting in the same position. He took the tray from her without a word, and with a nod of dismissal to Hermione set about drinking his tea. 

Shakily, Hermione left the room, her face the very picture of worry. She paused just outside of the room, leaning her head against the wall, setting a hand on her belly, feeling the baby kick. She had felt it two days before as well, but Ron had been in a bad mood that day too, and she had forgotten all about it in the fight afterwards. 

"Hermione?" Ron's voice sounded tired, and slightly confused. "Hermione, come here please," he called. She peered around the doorjamb. Ron looked up at her guiltily. "Baby, I am so sorry, I...I don't know what got into meThen the jobs not coming throughI'm not a very good husband am I?" His eyes begged forgiveness. Hermione let her defenses drop and embraced him. 

"Oh, honey!" she said, her voice breaking as she struggled not to cry at the look of despair on his face. "It's okaywe'll make it somehow" she said. Ron leaned his head back to rest on her shoulder, sighing. Hermione ran her shaking hands through the auburn locks she loved so much. 

"You're so good to me, Hermione," he whispered. Hermione kissed his forehead lightly. "So good to me I'm sorry I can't give you more"

"It's okay, Ron, everything is going to be okay," Hermione murmured. "It's gonna be okay" 

Outside, the heavy rain poured down, a never-ending surge of water. Inside the dingy little house the couple sat in silence, Ron sleeping softly, and Hermione deep in thought.

R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R 

The next morning, when Hermione woke, Ron was gone. _Off to another interview, I suppose,_ she thought, padding into the kitchen. She looked up in surprise when she got in there. The refrigerator was propped open, and three cans of beer were gone. She frowned, perplexed. She and Ron weren't much of drinkersshe because of her pregnancy, and him because he didn't like how he got when he got drunk. She shrugged off the missing cans, and set about making breakfast for herself with the remainder of good food left in the fridge. Had she cared to look in the garbage, she would have found the three cans of missing beerall empty.

R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R 

She was asleep when Ron came in that night, raving and drunk. She didn't hear him crashing through the darkened house (Hermione was a deep sleeper). She did, however, notice when he opened the door to their bedroom, stinking of sweat, drink, and something else, flipped the lightswitch, and shone it right into her eyes, shaking her rudely awake. 

_What the hell? Ron! My God, he looks terriblewhat the hell is wrong?_ "Ron! What's wrong?" Hermione asked, sitting up in bed, and rubbing her eyes. She glanced at the clock. Three o' clock. _Is he just getting in? No traffic couldn't have slowed him THAT much. _He didn't reply just stood there, looking out of his corner at her with bloodshot eyes. "Ron," Hermione said, beginning to panic. He'd only looked like that once, when his mother had died last year. "Did someone die? Is it Harry? Or Ginny? Or" she struggled to rise to her feet, finding herself caught in the bedclothes. He didn't move to help her. 

"Shut up." Ron's voice was quiet, yet powerful. Hermione topped trying to rise. He leaned in close. "Why weren't you waiting for me, woman?" he asked, his voice dangerously low. Hermione stiffened, smelling the drink on his breath. Unconsciously she shrank away from him. There was a disturbingly familiar smell on him, but she couldn't quite place it_What the hell is with him...Oh my godit's sex! That smell on himhe smells like sex! He's cheating on me? He can't do this to me...I need him, the baby needs him_

"Ron, where were you?" she asked desperately trying to find a reason not to believe the information her sense of smell had told her. 

"None of your business," he snapped, reeling back from her. "Don't shrink away from me! I am trying to talk to you!" he reached forward to grab her, but Hermione, in blind fear, shoved him away, and cowered against the headboard. 

"I hate it when you're like this," she whispered. There was silence. "Ron-" The slap came out of nowhere. Hermione reeled back, her head hitting the headboard with a _crack!_ For a moment her senses swayed, and the room swam before her eyes. Ron didn't even look sorry. 

"Get up" came Ron's snarl. Hermione obeyed unsteadily, looking him in the eye, refusing to back down. He grabbed her and pressed his lips to her, his hands groping and pinching. Struggling, Hermione tried to get him to let go of her. He went relentlessly, forcibly. 

The next hour was an hour that Hermione- try as she might in the morning and days to come, couldn't erase from her memory. The pain, the hurtthe intense feelingsnone of them good. _I can't believe he did that to me, _she thought despairingly. _I- I can't believe he did this to me. What if he hurt the baby?_

She rolled over early the next morning. Ron was lying next to her, his arm over his eyes. Hermione stared at the man she loved- the man she thought loved her. Why would he do this to her?

R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R 

Ok, so there's the end of the first chapter._ PLEASE _leave a review!!! Thanks for reading! 


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